When Bloch took up
Maud Alan's invitation to accompany
her troupe on a tour of the USA he began
a long if not unequivocal chapter of
association with that country. He was
there in Cleveland from 1916 to 1930
but returned for the Oregon years from
1939 to 1959. During this time, especially
the final spell, he also spent long
periods in Paris and Switzerland.

The quintets belong
to each of the two sojourns. The First
Quintet dates from the year before
he took U.S. citizenship. Like
the Second it is in three movements.
The first is strenuous, angry and has
a Hungarian twang. It lacks any Semitic
flavour unlike the glorious Schelomo
and the slightly less impressive Israel
Symphony. The second movement is
a masterfully concentrated mystic study
sustained over 10.22. The finale is
an exercise in Bartók-like aggression
and excitement; Bloch's own Allegro
Barbaro. There is a momentary edit
blip in this movement (tr.3, 00.14).

The Second Quintet
is much shorter. It inhabits some
odd moods. The first movement suggests
a surreal landscape - nothing atonal
or serial just intense singing, obsessive
and sharply searching activity. The
Kocians and Klánský make
much of the romantic surge. It sounds
like a desperate film noir score. The
sleepy otherworldliness of the central
movement is related in atmosphere.

These two piano quintets
fill a needy gap in the catalogues.
Currently the Arabesque and Pro Arte
recordings are unavailable. This is
no stop gap and it is warmly commended
to those interested in Bloch's chamber
music.

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